Leaf Trombone by Smule is an app that turns your iPhone or iPod Touch into an instrument that you can take with you wherever you go. To play your trombone, you just touch the the square on your leaf trombone and drag it up or down to the desired note. You can also just touch the spot where you want the square to move to. If you touch near the top, the note will be higher and if you touch the bottom the note will be lower. There are two buttons on the side; a plus sign and a minus sign. These change the octave you are playing in up or down to give you a wider range on your instrument.

Playing with the instrument in free play mode this way is fun, but you can also use the app to learn to play songs with a little help. First, enter the play a song mode and choose your song. Here you can listen in to the song to make sure it is the one you want. Then, add the song to your favorites. When you go to play the song, the app will give you little leaf guidelines. The leaf guidelines are leaves that enter the screen subtly from the left side to let you know which notes are coming next. While you are playing in free play or play a song modes, a circular wheel spins and gives the beat for you to play along to.

Once you feel your skills with your trombone are worthy of recognition, you can record your playing and have it performed on the world stage. Three judges will listen to your performance, and at the end of it they will give you a number rating and pointers to help you improve. If you wish to perform on the world stage, you must have at least 2 leaf tokens. To earn leaf tokens, you need to judge other peoples performances on the world stage. All you do is listen to their song, give smiley face reactions, and give them a final ranking. There are prizes awarded for playing on the world stage 25 times, as well as for judging on the stage 100 times. If you don’t have courage to perform either of tasks, you can simply observe other people and judges at work.

As you become a better performer and judge, you may even show up in the online rankings. This is a great instrument that is very easy to use. Leaf Trombone is definitely a well-executed app that is perfect for any person with or without musical talent. One of the best dollars I have ever spent in the App Store.